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Macbook vs Macbook air vs Macbook pro

What is the difference between the three and which one is best to buy for school.

Macbook air:11-inch from £749 13-inch from £849
Macbook pro:13 inch £999 15 inch from £1599
Macbook:£1,049

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Reply 1
Avatar for ombtom
ombtom
17
Original post by Maria1812
What is the difference between the three and which one is best to buy for school.

Macbook air:11-inch from £749 13-inch from £849
Macbook pro:13 inch £999 15 inch from £1599
Macbook:£1,049


Whichever one you get, make sure you buy a good case. Macbooks are easily damaged. I'd say a 15-inch is too large for school, but that's obviously subjective.
Reply 2
Avatar for user382
user382
17
My Macbook Air 11 is perfect. Do everything on it.

The Macbook Pro 13 is a perfect combination of power and portability. If you need to do slightly more demanding tasks.

The Macbook is sexy but pointless right now. More expensive and less powerful and practical than the others.

Basically in 10 years the Macbook Pro will probably look like the Macbook. May as well wait.

:wink:
Original post by ombtom
Whichever one you get, make sure you buy a good case. Macbooks are easily damaged. I'd say a 15-inch is too large for school, but that's obviously subjective.


Any recommendations?
Macbook pro 13 inch is fantastic. I use it for basically everything. Would prefer to have a desktop PC but I don't have space, nor a permanent enough space to do it. It replaces it very well. I can code, photoshop, watch movies, etc. all at great speeds and resolution.

Just get a case. I cracked my inner LCD recently. Very bitter.
Reply 5
Avatar for ombtom
ombtom
17
Original post by redinthegrey
Any recommendations?


For the case? Mine's made by Speck; it's good for preventing scratches, but it probably won't help at all if I ever drop my laptop. Sorry I can't help more. :smile:
Go to John Lewis or an Apple store if you cna to get an idea of size and weight. then its a case of what features you need and waht you cna do without in terms of specs. Power and extras cost money. You need to figure out what you will be doing with it, what software you will need etc.

See if theres an applicable student discount.
John Lewis will give you an extra years guarantee free.

The best review imo are on mobile tech review, they ryn through each aspect in depth and she knows her stuff.
http://www.mobiletechreview.com/notebook.htm
13 is a good compromise size imo.
Macbook Pro 13" is ideal for studying, can fit in a handbag and it's lightweight but doesn't feel as flimsy as the Air. Make sure you use the Apple Education Store discount, it really does make a difference.
I'd get insurance as well if you're even slightly clumsy I dropped water on mine and because they're so sensitive it would have cost over £1000 to repair luckily I had insurance so I only paid £50 for a new one
Original post by 999tigger
Go to John Lewis or an Apple store if you cna to get an idea of size and weight. then its a case of what features you need and waht you cna do without in terms of specs. Power and extras cost money. You need to figure out what you will be doing with it, what software you will need etc.

See if theres an applicable student discount.
John Lewis will give you an extra years guarantee free.

The best review imo are on mobile tech review, they ryn through each aspect in depth and she knows her stuff.
http://www.mobiletechreview.com/notebook.htm
13 is a good compromise size imo.


Ooh nice I didn't know about John Lewis' extra years' guarantee :smile: Apple would be a better deal though I think? Not aware of John Lewis doing a discount of like 15% for students
Original post by jawsontheflooor
Macbook Pro 13" is ideal for studying, can fit in a handbag and it's lightweight but doesn't feel as flimsy as the Air. Make sure you use the Apple Education Store discount, it really does make a difference.
I'd get insurance as well if you're even slightly clumsy I dropped water on mine and because they're so sensitive it would have cost over £1000 to repair luckily I had insurance so I only paid £50 for a new one


I thought Macs were meant to be sturdy? :frown:
Original post by Maria1812
What is the difference between the three and which one is best to buy for school.

Macbook air:11-inch from £749 13-inch from £849
Macbook pro:13 inch £999 15 inch from £1599
Macbook:£1,049


Macbook pro 13" retina is the way to go

Go for the 128GB model and buy a memory stick with a large capacity. Then have some external hard drives for home.
Original post by redinthegrey
I thought Macs were meant to be sturdy? :frown:


They are, especially the 2012 models.

Just no laptop is resistant to water :smile:
I have the 15" retina MBP and it is spectacular.


I pity those with the smaller 11"/13" screens, to be honest. The bigger screen is so much better.
watch the reviews they will tell you everything you need to know.
Reply 14
Avatar for Tom78
Tom78
18
Get a HP and save your parents £500
Original post by Maria1812
What is the difference between the three and which one is best to buy for school.

Macbook air:11-inch from £749 13-inch from £849
Macbook pro:13 inch £999 15 inch from £1599
Macbook:£1,049


Wait a while, don't buy now. 2016 updates for the MacBook and MacBook Pro are imminent, and at the very latest they'll arrive at WWDC (13th June). The current models are fine, but as you'll want to keep it for a long time, it's worth waiting for new processors, as the current models are a year old already.

I recommend the 13 inch Retina MacBook Pro, which is what I'll be getting for uni in August. The Air is a dead line, pretty much - the screen is awful, it has a chunky design that hasn't been updated since 2010, it doesn't even have the force touch trackpad... I really don't recommend it, as it's only a matter of time before the MacBook replaces it.

But I wouldn't recommend getting the MacBook - it's only first gen, so, a little like the first gen Air in 2008, it's got too many compromises. Its processor is slow, and it only has one port, and USB-C isn't widely used yet, so you'd need adaptors for everything. In a year or two it'll be pretty much the perfect laptop, and the likely 2016 MacBook Pro redesign will be inspired by it, but right now there's too many compromises.

The 13 inch Retina Pro, however, is pretty much perfect. It's got a great screen, plenty of power, the force touch trackpad, more RAM than the baseline MacBook Air, and plenty of ports, but it's also portable. If you can afford it, get this one.

So yeah, I do recommend waiting until June for (potentially major) updates, but if you need one now, then the current generation 13 inch Retina MacBook Pro is still great. Make sure you sign up for Unidays and get the education discount (just enter your school's email address) as it makes it a lot more affordable.
All the more reason to look at getting a bargain on current models when they do deep discounting then.
You cna also get additional insurance via certain bank accounts. I think insurance/warranty for all 3 years of your degree is a wise thing to have.
Original post by redinthegrey
I thought Macs were meant to be sturdy? :frown:

Idk if they are I always feel like i'm gonna break it when the screen goes back really far but it hasn't yet so i'm guessing it'll be fine.. it just feels like such a delicate object and because you spend so much on it it's kinda scary
but yeah I doubt any laptop can withstand water lol
Original post by Maria1812
What is the difference between the three and which one is best to buy for school.

Macbook air:11-inch from £749 13-inch from £849
Macbook pro:13 inch £999 15 inch from £1599
Macbook:£1,049


Macs are a waste of money if you buy one you are being bent over and shafted by the ghost of Steve Jobs.
Original post by MyNameWasTaken12
Macs are a waste of money if you buy one you are being bent over and shafted by the ghost of Steve Jobs.


Not a waste certain people like paying the pemiium and being in the mac exclusive tribe. Apple happy. Poor games machine though.............

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